February 28, 2022
Stories of GratitudeEarlier this month, more than 350 of our students participated in the Ball State University Dance Marathon—an annual fundraising event that benefits Riley Hospital for Children at IU Health. After spending more than 13 hours on their feet, dancing and participating in activities that began on February 12 and ended on February 13, our students raised approximately $277,000.
Proceeds from this event help fund Riley’s palliative care team and the Magic Castle Cart program. The palliative team ensures the best quality of care for children with long-term or life-threatening medical conditions. And for decades, the Magic Castle Cart program has brought smiles and gifts to many children during their stays at Riley.
I am grateful to all Ball State students who were involved in this year’s Dance Marathon. Every step they took and every dollar they raised demonstrated their commitment to providing hope and healing to Riley families.
And each year that I visit with our students during this popular event, I am inspired by their commitment to serve others. In doing so, these students embrace and exemplify the enduring values of Beneficence.
May Beneficence guide all of us as we work, study, and live on our beautiful campus.
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Sincerely,
Geoffrey S. Mearns
President
Ball State University
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Program Offers Self-Care, Resiliency, Coping Skills, and More
“Time for You” is a four-week, self-guided resiliency program that provides several activity options to complete each week to focus on positive self-care, managing daily stressors, and building healthy coping skills. Participants will receive a PDF version of a resiliency skills training workbook, plus weekly emails during their four-week program. Sign up anytime through Working Well.
Lifeworks Offers Various Types of Support to Ball State Employees
Lifeworks is available to support Ball State employees’ mental, physical, financial, and social well-being. Lifeworks includes access to confidential Employee Assistance Program (EAP), perks and savings, a recognition platform, as well as a variety of health assessments. Employees can log into Lifeworks using their Ball State user name and password.
Organizational Development and Learning Virtual Session Set for March 2
A virtual Learning and Development session on Customer Service in Higher Education is scheduled for 2 to 3:30 p.m. on March 2. Topics covered in this session include: Defining Service in Higher Education, Active Listening and Communication Strategies, and Assisting with Difficult Customers. To register for this virtual session, visit the Human Resources Learning and Development website. Click on “View Upcoming Learning Sessions.” Login to MiniCourse using ONLY your Ball State login without the @bsu.edu. Find the session titled “Customer Service in Higher Education” and register.
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| Ball State's Response to COVID-19
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All employees are strongly encouraged to get a COVID-19 vaccination and then attest to their full vaccination using our online form. For more COVID-19 information, plans, and resources for faculty, staff, students, and campus visitors, visit the Ball State Cardinals Care website.
On-Campus Vaccine Clinic days in March
The vaccine clinic at the ICC offers the Moderna booster shot as well as the Moderna vaccine series. Call Interprofessional Community Clinics at 765-285-4422 with questions.
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Our Call to Beneficence Podcast
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New Episode of Our Call to Beneficence Features Award-Winning Television Host, Media Critic, Columnist Brandon Pope ’14
Ball State University graduate Brandon Pope—an award-winning and Emmy nominated television host, media critic, and columnist—is the guest on the next episode of the monthly podcast Our Call to Beneficence, hosted by Ball State University President Geoffrey S. Mearns. The episode featuring Mr. Pope is available now.
The podcast features President Mearns’ conversations with graduates and friends of Ball State who embody the spirit of Beneficence through their professional success and personal service.
Mr. Pope, ‘14, has had his work featured on CW26 Chicago, on WGN Radio, and in Ebony Magazine, Medium, and the Chicago Sun-Times. His work has taken him around the country and beyond the United States. He covered the 2012 and 2016 U.S. presidential elections, 2012 Summer Olympics in London, Indy 500, college football, the PGA Tour, plus the NFL and NBA playoffs. He also appears on podcasts and radio programs to discuss a wide range of topics.
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Stay current on latest Statehouse news
The Office of Governmental Relations invites you to subscribe to its weekly newsletter, Statehouse Update. The newsletter provides updates on key legislation being followed by the University and insights into the legislative process. Sign up or view past editions of the newsletter.
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Nominations Sought for Immersive Learning Student Advisory Board
A special opportunity is available for Ball State sophomores and juniors—and seniors who will attend graduate school at Ball State—who are passionate about immersive learning. Nominations are being accepted for the University’s Immersive Learning Student Advisory Board.
Selected students will jointly serve as a sounding board for Ball State’s immersive learning program suggestions, project proposals, and student recruitment strategies for future projects.
These student ambassadors will represent immersive learning programs at campus-wide events, on grant review committees, and as liaisons to their departments and colleges.
Two representatives from each college will be appointed to serve one or two-year terms depending on their graduation plans. Self-nominations will be accepted. The nomination deadline for the 2022-2023 academic year is March 18, 2022. Learn more.
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Nominations, Applications Accepted for the John R. Emens Outstanding Senior Award
The John R. Emens Award is named in honor of Dr. John Emens, former president of Ball State University, in recognition of his outstanding services and contributions to the University. This award recognizes an outstanding senior in honor of their cumulative record of co-curricular achievement, leadership, and contributions to Ball State as an undergraduate student. The award winner is recognized at the May Commencement ceremony.
The division of Student Affairs invites faculty, staff, and students to submit online nominations for the John R. Emens Outstanding Senior Award. The two-step nomination process for the award includes a nomination letter submitted by a faculty, staff, student or student organization AND an application submitted by the nominee.
To nominate an outstanding senior:- Nominator completes Nominator Form using Benny Link. Sign-in to Benny Link using BSU credentials. Go to “Forms” tab at the top of the page. Type “John” in the search box. Choose “Nominator Form.”
AND - Nominee completes Nominee Application Form using Benny Link. Sign-in to Benny Link using BSU credentials. Go to “Forms” tab at the top of the page. Type “John” in the search box. Choose “Nominee Application.”
‘Excellence in Leadership’ Speaker Series Event Set for March 22
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R. Wayne Estopinal College of Architecture and Planning
CAP Lecture Series Event Planned for March 28
Architect Jonathan Moody, CEO of Moody Nolan, will give a virtual presentation as part of the College of Architecture and Planning (CAP) Lecture Series. Mr. Moody will be sharing his passion for using design to improve lives in disadvantaged communities. The virtual presentation is scheduled for 4 p.m. on March 28 and all are welcome to attend. For a link to the presentation, email caplectures@bsu.edu.
CERES Team Helps Achieve Living Building Certification
Earning this special certification is the result, in large part, of multi-year collaborative efforts that included Ball State faculty and students; Cope Environmental Center staff; and design architect Kevin McCurdy, a Ball State graduate of the College of Architecture and Planning. Mr. McCurdy is a partner at LWC Incorporated.
Living Building Certification is issued in recognition of the achievement of the highest proficiency in the categories of Place, Water, Energy, Health and Happiness, Materials, Equity, and Beauty.
Ball State contributors to this collaboration came from the University’s Center for Energy Research/Education/Service (CERES) faculty, staff, and students, including Robert Koester, Ball State professor of Architecture and CERES director; CERES operations manager (ret.) Jeff Culp; and CERES research assistants and CAP graduates Lauren McWhorter and Ben Grayson.
Accolade and Achievement
Miller College of Business
MBA Ranked in Top 20 on U.S. News & World Report’s ‘Best Online MBA Programs’ List
Miller College of Business is ranked No. 20 out of 328 in U.S. News & World Report’s Best Online MBA Programs. The program is also ranked No. 22 for “Best Online MBA Programs for Veterans.” Schools are ranked according to their performance across a set of widely accepted indicators of excellence. Read more about how schools are ranked.
Entrepreneurial Experience Lecture Series Gets Underway
The Entrepreneurial Experience Lecture Series kicked off in January with Dr. Nick Elam, assistant professor of Educational Leadership at Ball State University. Dr. Elam devised a new format for basketball, where the final portion of the game would be played without a game clock to preserve a more natural and exciting style of play. After years of researching and promoting this concept, the “Elam Ending” was finally implemented for the first time by TBT: The Basketball Tournament in 2017, and it has been in use by the NBA in its annual All-Star Game the past three years. Attend the remaining lectures in the series live on Facebook.
College of Communication, Information, and Media
Ball State, Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Announce Esports Partnership, Scholarships
Ball State University and Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing (RLL) announced, on Feb. 9, a partnership that will provide unique and meaningful opportunities for students engaged in Ball State’s esports program. On-hand for the announcement, made at the University’s Robert Bell Building, was television legend and 1969 Ball State graduate David Letterman—a co-owner of RLL.
Among the key aspects of the partnership is the establishment of the Rahal Letterman Lanigan Racing Scholarship, which will provide a $5,000 scholarship to two members of Ball State’s varsity esports team each year from the 2022-23 through 2025-26 academic years, advancing the program’s mission of recruiting and retaining the top esports talent in the world.
Ball State Esports student-athletes will also participate in community events to promote the e-racing series in conjunction with RLL.
Sports Link Launches After-School Media Production Program for Muncie Central, Muncie Burris Students
Ball State Sports Link, the nation’s first academic track in sports media production, has launched a new, seven-week after-school program, “Sports Media Production: The Experience,” with high school students from Muncie Central and Muncie Burris. Working with Chris Taylor, senior director of sports production and associate lecturer of media at Ball State, and students from the Sports Link program, the high school students have been learning the elements of sports media production. One highlight of the after-school program was the opportunity for the high school students to provide pre-event and live event coverage for the Jan. 29 Muncie boys basketball City of Champions Tournament at the historic Muncie Fieldhouse. Learn more about this after-school media production program.
College of Fine Arts
DOMA to Host Works by Figurative Artist Larry Day
The David Owsley Museum of Art (DOMA) will host Body Language: The Art of Larry Day, an expansive exhibition of more than 50 paintings and drawings by figurative artist Larry Day (1921–1998). This exhibit can be viewed Feb. 24 through May 21, 2022.
Organized by the Woodmere Art Museum in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, the exhibition explores Mr. Day’s contributions to American art from the 1950s through the 1990s. The exhibition surveys the three most prominent thematic categories in Mr. Day’s distinctive career: abstraction, figuration, and cityscape. Together, they work in concert to reinforce the artist’s significance and lasting relevance while exploring Mr. Day’s shift from abstraction to representation. Read more.
College of HealthSymposium on Substance Use Disorders Scheduled for March 15
The College of Health is partnering with the Addictions Coalition of Delaware County once again to host the third annual “Delaware County Symposium on Substance Use Disorders.” This symposium presents an inter-professional approach to substance use disorders prevention, detection, treatment, and recovery in Delaware County. The symposium will be held from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on March 15, in the LA Pittenger Student Center, Cardinal Hall A & B. Learn more about this event, and register to attend.
College of Sciences and HumanitiesAccolades and Awards
Biology Professors Secure National Science Foundation Funding
Dr. Kevin H. Wyatt, associate professor of Biology, and Dr. Allison R. Rober, associate professor of Environmental Biology, have been awarded $199,895 from the National Science Foundation for their research project at the Bonanza Creek Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) site in Alaska. This project, which will begin in Summer 2022 and continue through 2025, will study northern peatlands to better understand future carbon emissions and feedback loops associated with climate change. This project will provide research experience for Ball State undergraduate students from under-represented groups, and train graduate students.
Teachers CollegeAccolades and Published Writings
Dr. Serena Shim, professor of Educational Psychology, was appointed to be a Research Fellow for the Education Research Institute, Sungshin Woman’s University, Korea. Dr. Shim also recently published an editorial: “Extending Motivational Framework to Teachers: Same Construct Might Function Differently for Teachers vs. Students” in Educational Psychology.
Dr. Serena Salloum, associate professor of Educational Leadership, has recently published: “Building Coherence: An Investigation of Collective Efficacy, Social Context, and How Leaders Shape Teachers’ Work” in the American Journal of Education.
Burris students receive MLK Youth Citizenship Awards
The Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Dream Team awarded 134 MLK Youth Citizenship Awards to students across Delaware County. Among the recipients are the following 20 Burris Laboratory School students:
- Helen Fan, Evelynn Glidde, Alonna Mitchell, Aaron Nguyen, Lydia Rutherford, and Marlowe Shermeta (Burris Elementary School)
- Dorothy Eads, Elva Gu, Sydney Jackson, Dylan Mitchell, Ericka Rosado, and Danyal Syed (Burris Middle School)
- Dutsika Campa, Laylianna EDeeb, Jackson Littlejohn, Brandon Milleman, Bentley Miller, Gerry Moore, Faith Shroll, and Moses Smith (Burris High School)
Honors CollegeBall Brothers Foundation Honors College Faculty Fellow 2022-2024 Selected
Dr. Ellen Thorington, associate professor of French, has been selected as the 2022-2024 Ball Brothers Foundation Honors College Faculty Fellow. Dr. Thorington will develop an HONR 189 course on societal and family crisis, from colonialism to COVID-19 and climate change, examining various global and indigenous perspectives. Her HONR 390 colloquium will investigate the lives and work of medieval women writers. In Spring 2024, she will mentor a cohort of students to develop their honors theses on the theme, “The History of the Book.”
Dr. Thorington will be introduced at the Honors College Lecture Series event on March 21. She will give a lecture titled, “The Curious Case of the Changing Title: Mystery, Motherhood and Legacy in the Teachings of Christine de Pizan.” The March 21 lecture is scheduled for 3 p.m. at the Ball Honors House in Room BA117. All are welcome to attend.
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